Alabama running back T.J. Yeldon (4) carries the ball for a touchdown during the third quarter Saturday against LSU at Bryant-Denny Stadium. / John David Mercer, USA TODAY Sports

by George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports

by George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - As it turned out, the fake punt might not have been absolutely necessary. But it was nifty, and fun, and it looked every bit like something Les Miles would unleash. But Nick Saban?

"Coach has got a couple of 'em up his sleeve, too," said Jarrick Williams, the junior defensive back who took a handoff from a linebacker and bolted 6 yards to convert first down, and then bemoaned not getting more. "He shoestringed me," Williams said, "or I would have broke it."

Alabama broke LSU anyway, and the 38-17 final score Saturday night was at once reflective of the top-ranked Crimson Tide's dominance and deceptive, as well, because there was a point in the third quarter when the outcome was not certain, when if the Tigers smelled upset, the fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium did, too â?? and when Saban believed the fake punt was necessary.

"We didn't want to give them the ball back, because we weren't playing great on defense," he said.

LSU was pushing the Tide, and another instant classic seemed very possible â?? though this one was headed toward shootout rather than slugfest â?? and more important, another November upset to rearrange the BCS picture. Instead, it crystallized the Tide's stature.

While other teams have jockeyed for position in the race â?? currently, the top challenger is Florida State, with Ohio State, Baylor and Stanford in the mix â?? the Crimson Tide has remained a solid No. 1 in the polls and the all-important BCS standings. Against LSU â?? "probably our toughest opponent yet," quarterback A.J. McCarron said, and certainly the Tide's first test since that mid-September shootout against Texas A&M â?? Alabama showed why the ranking remains correct.

Meanwhile, LSU has slipped just a bit; losses to Georgia and Ole Miss eliminated the Tigers from the national picture. But except for a couple of costly mistakes, the Tigers would have led at halftime. It was tied at 17 when the Tide bogged down near midfield midway through the third quarter.

Saban sent out the punt team. Then he called timeout, and if Miles and everyone else thought they knew what was coming then, we all should have. The Tide faked the punt, got the first down â?? and rolled from there.

"They keep the ball for the remainder of the time," Miles said, "and score seven."

They kept it almost the entire remainder of the game, and scored 21. The formula was familiar: The Tide's power running game got going, augmented by very occasional passing (AJ McCarron threw only seven times in the second half, completing five). Three consecutive possessions went 79, 71 and 78 yards. Fourteen, 10 and eight plays. A combined 17 minutes, 34 seconds. T.J. Yeldon steaming downhill. Offensive linemen yelling in the huddle for more running plays.

"The drive on some of those runs were pretty special," Miles said.

Meanwhile, a defense that had struggled to contain Zach Mettenberger's passing held LSU to 52 yards in the second half. The combination of power offense and suddenly suffocating defense was as lethal as ever. "We probably played our best half of football," Saban said.

It was more than enough to squelch LSU's upset opportunity. And in retrospect, if Saban had decided not to gamble, it probably wouldn't have mattered. The Tide was too good.

"I think everything would have played out the same," Williams said.

When Saban called timeout with 8:52 left in the third quarter after Yeldon lost a yard on third-and-1, Miles apparently suspected trickery. He replaced the punt return unit with the regular defense â?? which was exactly the look Alabama wanted, the go-ahead to try the fake.

All-America linebacker C.J. Mosley took a direct snap as the upback, then handed off to defensive back Jarrick Williams, who ran around the right end. From there, the Tide ran over the Tigers.

"It was a big key play," Williams said. "It got us where we were trying to get."

And nearer to where they seem destined to go, again. The victory pushed Alabama a huge step toward a shot at a third consecutive BCS championship and fourth in five years. The Tide has games left against Mississippi State, Chattanooga and Auburn to close the regular season, and given the performance against LSU, only the Iron Bowl appears to offer a realistic threat.

"It's all about creating an identity," Mosley said. Alabama's identity, Mosley explained, is "Our team can stop people and finish strong. â?¦ We proved to be the best team out there tonight and one of the best in the country."

Maybe still the best in the country. Afterward, as the Tide players headed to the locker room, a fan lingered on the front railing at Bryant-Denny Stadium, holding high a poster that read:

Y'ALL Don't

WANT

BAMA

Other fans chanted: "WE want Bama!" And both were obvious references to chants and signs from fans of other BCS contenders, including Florida State and, until a loss Thursday, Oregon.

About that same time, Saban finished a TV interview at midfield and started jogging for the locker room, followed closely by two state troopers. Suddenly, he reversed course and did something resembling a victory lap around the field, with his right index finger pointing toward the sky in the universal No. 1 symbol.

Saban shrugged it off as a simple gesture of appreciation to the fans. But after the victory over LSU, there's little reason to doubt Alabama's status.